Ingot furnace



INGO'I FURNACE Filed June 5, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR BY I ATTORNEY F I i- Sept. 10, 1940. A. MEYER 2,214,234

INC-0T FURNACE I Filed June 5, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fi/ Meyer BY 65. 5M fi ATToRNEY Sept. 10, 1940. A. MEYER 2,214,234

INGOT FURNACE Filed June 5, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 r--' INVENTOR /7/ Meyer ATTORN EY Patented Sept. 10, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT @FFICE INGOT FURNACE,

Application June 5, 1939, Serial No. 277,406

9 Claims.

The invention relates to steel and iron furnaces such as used to heat-treat the steel and iron, and more particularly to an ingot furnace which is adapted to heat a plurality of ingots preparatory to rolling of the ingots into commercial steel products.

In the customary ingot furnace of the character described, the furnace consists of an elongated enclosure defining a furnace chamber which is s-uitably heated and through which a plurality'of ingots are moved so as to heat the ingots to a temperature suitable for rolling of the ingots. Ordinarily the furnace is provided with longitudinal ingot supporting means most commonly in the form of water cooled skid pipes, and the ingots are caused to slide longitudinally through the chamber over such supporting means. The ingots are generally inserted one after another at one end of the furnace and pushed longitudinally through the furnace by means of a suitable pusher mechanism which engages the ingot last inserted and pushes the latter and all of the rest of the ingots in the furnace longitudinally. In this manner the ingots are displaced one against the other without any space therebetween and as an integral mass through the furnace, and are constantly disposed with one side of the ingot rested and supported on the longitudinal skid pipes. As a result, a uniform heating of the ingots is impossible. The portions of each of the ingots engaged by the skid pipes remain relatively cool, while the majority of the remainder of the ingot is heated. It is, therefore, common to remove the ingot from the furnace with cold spots on the ingot where the same have been in contact with the longitudinal skid pipes. Furthermore, the opposite sides of the ingots are not properly heated, due to their immediate contact with the other ingots and 40 hence a uniform heating of the ingots is not effected. In accordance with the present invention and as a principal object thereof, I have provided an ingot furnace of the character described wherein the ingots are turned or rotated within the furnace as well as moved longitudinally through the furnace, so that all sides of the ingot will be uniformly heated. Further, the mechanism of the present invention will effect a longitudinal displacement of the ingots through the furnace with the ingots substantially spaced from each other so that at no time during their advance through the furnace will the ingots contact each other. In this manner an absolutely uniform heating of the ingots may be obtained.

Another disadvantage of ingot furnaces heretofore used and as above described, lies in the fact that the ingots are advanced through the furnace chamber by means of a pusher mechanism located exclusively at the inlet end of the furnace. By reason of this construction the furnace must be operated at all times during the delivery of ingots from the discharge end of the furnace with the furnace chamber full of ingots, inasmuch as the advancement of the ingots to the discharge end depends upon the presence of ingots at the inlet end of the furnace. Consequently, upon closing down of the furnace at the end of a working day, the furnace is left full of heated ingots and the great quantity of heat contained in such ingots is substantially entirely Wasted. In accordance with the present invention and as a further object thereof, I have provided an ingot furnace wherein the ingot advancing means thereof is operable to advance any number of ingots and even a single ingot longitudinally through the furnace, whereby at the end of a working day the furnace'may be left completely empty of any ingots.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an ingot furnace of the character above wherein the ingot advancing mechanism will be constructed of a minimum number of sturdily formed parts designed and arranged to ensure a positive operation of the furnace and which will be suitably cooled to withstand the high operating temperature of the furnace interior for a substantially unlimited period of useful life.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of the preferred form of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by the said drawings and description may be adopted within the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawings:

Figure l is a vertical cross-sectional view of an ingot furnace constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the ingot furnace with portions of the furnace adjacent the opposite ends thereof broken away to illustrate certain interior parts thereof.

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary longitudinal section of a part of the ingot advancing mechanism.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3, but showthe ingots.

ing the operating parts in an advanced position.

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figures 3 and 4, but showing the operating parts in a further advanced position.

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figures 3, 4 and 5 and showing the operating parts in a still further advanced position.

The ingot furnace of the present invention consists briefiy in an elongated furnace enclosure defining an interior furnace chamber and within which is provided longitudinal ingot supporting means in combination with means for turning the ingots and displacing the ingots longitudinally through the chamber and including a plurality of cranks arranged in longitudinally spaced relation in the chamber and with their axes of rotation transverse to the chamber, and each having a rotational path extending above the ingot supporting means for engagement with the ingots and adapted on rotation to successively engage, rotate and longitudinally displace In accordance with this construction each of the aforementioned cranks is adapted to engage, turn and longitudinally displace one ingot and to deliver the ingot into the operating zone of the next longitudinally displaced crank, so that the ingots will be successively engaged by the successive longitudinal cranks and thereby carried longitudinally through the furnace.

With reference more specifically to the accompanying drawings, the ingot furnace of the present invention consists of a brick furnace enclosure 6, including a pair of vertical horizontally spaced longitudinally extending side walls 1 and 8, a top wall 9 and opposite end walls II and I2. Preferably, the brick enclosure is contained within a structural steel framework, including a plurality of vertical channels or buckstays l3 connected at their upper ends by horizontal rods |4 superimposed over the top wall 9 of the furnace. Steel plates |6 are also preferably provided across the front end of the furnace, here generally identified by the wall I I. Provided within the interior of the furnace and within a furnace chamber defined by the furnace walls aforesaid, are a pair of horizontal, longitudinally extending walls l8 and I9 which are generally parallel to and spaced from the longitudinal side walls I and B. These walls l8 and I9 are arranged for the support of a plurality of ingots 2| adapted to be moved longitudinally through the furnace, and are preferably provided on the top surfaces of the walls with longitudinal skid pipes 22 and 23, upon which the ingots are rested. As will be seen from Figure 2, the skid pipes extend through a base portion of a front opening 24 in the front wall N5 of the furnace longitudinally through the interior chamber I! for substantially the full length thereof to adjacent the rear end l2 where the pipes are removed into a pit 26. These pipes are suitably connected to a source of cooling water or other fluid for constant circulation of the cooling water through the skid pipes during the operation of the furnace. The opening 24 in the front wall of the furnace is preferably of elongated form, so as to receive an elongated ingot with the length of the ingot widthwise of the furnace. Ingots are fed to the opening 24 upon supporting rails 21 by means of a suitable locatingv and displacing mechanism (not shown) and are moved from the rails El directly onto the skid pipes 22 and 23 for movement longitu- -dinally through the furnace, the displacing mechanism in the present instance being operative to place the ingots through the opening 24 and into the interior of the chamber into reach of the ingot displacing mechanism of the present invention. A plurality of burners 28, 29 and 3| may be located at the discharge end of the furnace as here shown, for injecting a longitudinal flame into the burner chamber over the top of the ingots and also under the ingots as for example, as here shown, between the interior walls l8 and IS.

The ingot advancingmeans of the present invention and as aforementioned, consists of a plurality of longitudinally spaced transversely extending cranks 32, each of similar construction and including an elongated shaft 33 which is journaled in horizontal bearings 34 and 3B in the end walls 1 and 8 of the furnace and in bearings 31 and 38 in the interior walls l8 and I9. Each of the shafts is provided with a pair of offset crank portions 39 and 4|, which are located at the outer sides of the interior walls It! and I9 and between these latter walls and the furnace walls I and 8, and are offset from the longitudinal axis of the shaft by a distance giving these offset portions a rotational path extending well above the top of the skid pipes 22 and 23. The operation of the cranks is portrayed in Figures 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings, where a longitudinal section of the furnace is shown including three cranks and three longitudinally spaced ingots. As the cranks are rotated in a clockwise direction, as illustrated in these figures, the offset portions 39 and 4| of the cranks first engage the underside 42 of the ingots 2| adjacent the rearward side 43 of the ingots and as the cranks continue to rotate, the underside of the ingot is lifted and the ingot turned about the forward edge of the underside 42 of the ingot, as illustrated in Figure 4. Upon further rotation of the crank, the ingot turns and falls to locate the side 44 thereof downwardly against the skid pipes 22 and 23 and to position the side 42 thereof formerly at the bottom, now on the rearward side. ingots is illustrated in Figure 5. As the cranks continue their rotational movement, the offset portions of the crank engage the side 42 of the ingot and longitudinally slide the ingots with the sides 44 thereof downward. In accordance with the present arrangement, the longitudinal spacing of the shafts is substantially equal to the longitudinal displacement of the ingots by each of the shafts, whereby each of the cranks will turn an ingot and displace the ingot forwardly into the reach of the next forwardly positioned crank. In this manner the ingots are successively moved from crank to crank longitudinally through the furnace chamber and a spacing approximately equal to the width of an ingot is maintained between the ingots during the travel of the ingots through the furnace. In the present case I have illustrated the ingots as being rectangular in cross-section, which is customarily the form of the ingots. However, it will be understood that the present mechanism may be used with an ingot of other crosssectional form, particularly where the same is provided with fiat polygonal sides.

As an important feature of the present construction, the cranks are water cooled and to this end are constructed of tubular form, such as from pipes, and are connected at their opposite ends 46 and 41 with suitable swivel joints 48 and 49 which are in turn connected as by con- This rotated position of the Y duits 5| and 52 to a fluid circulating system. In this manner the cranks are constantly cooled and thereby able to withstand the high temperature of the furnace interior for a substantially unlimited period of time.

Rotation of the cranks is here effected by means of sprockets 53 which are mounted on the outer ends 41 of each of the cranks and connected by chains 54 and 56 for driving the cranks in unison and in synchronism. Preferably the sprockets are of substantial diameter, approximately equal to the longitudinal spacing of the cranks, and hence it is desirable to dispose the sprockets of every other crank in a plane ofiset from the remainder of the sprockets, such as shown in Fig ures 1 and 2. One chain 54, here engages one gang of sprockets while the other chain 56 engages the second outwardly set gang of sprockets. A suitable drive means, such as a motor or the like (not shown), is connected to the chains for driving the second sets of sprockets in unison and in synchronism. Preferably, an additional support is provided for the shafts at the outer ends thereof and is here furnished by a pair of longitudinal plates 5'! and 58 mounted at the outer side of the buckstays I3 and extending longitudinally of the furnace and provided with openings for the receipt and support of the outer crank end portions.

Means is provided at the discharge end E2 of the furnace for automatically and continuously removing the ingots as the same are passed through the interior of the furnace to such end. In accordance with this provision, one of the furnace walls I is provided with a discharge opening 59 adjacent the end l2 and at a height registering with the skid pipes 22 and 23. The opening is also transversely aligned with the pit 2B mentioned in the foregoing, and carried in this pit and out through the opening 59 is an elongated endless conveyor 6! which carries ingot engaging lugs 62 which project from the upper flight B3 of the conveyor through an opening M in an ingot supporting plate 66 mounted across the top of the pit. In accordance with this construction, the ingots are deposited from the skid pipes onto the supporting plate 65 and are there engaged by the lugs 62 and carried outwardly through the opening 59.

It will now be clear that in accordance with the present construction ingots may be continuously fed into the inlet end of the furnace and such ingots will be periodically turned and longitudinally displaced through the length of the furnace with all of the sides of the ingot being successively turned to the flame in the furnace and advanced through the furnace with a desirable spacing between the ingots, and finally automatically and continuously removed from the discharge end of the furnace for passage to a rolling mill or the like. It will also be clear that in this manner the ingots are thoroughly and uniformly heated and that the passage of each ingot through the furnace is not dependent on the presence of any other ingots in the furnace, whereby upon closing down of the furnace at the end of a working day, the last ingot in the furnace may be removed to leave the furnace empty at the time of stopping of operation. It will further be clear that the furnace is also equally operative to provide the other objects and features hereinabove enumerated.

I claim:

1. An ingot furnace comprising, an elongated furnace chamber, parallel longitudinal skid pipes mounted in said chamber for support of a plurality of rectangular shaped elongated ingots arranged widthwise of the chamber, a plurality of longitudinally spaced cranks extending transversely across said chamber and having a rotational path extending above said skid pipes for engagement of the ingots rested thereon and adapted during rotation to successively engage, rotate, and longitudinally displace said ingots, and means for rotating said cranks in synchronism.

2. In combination with an ingot furnace providing an elongated furnace chamber and means for supporting a plurality of elongated ingots arranged widthwise of the chamber for movement longitudinally through said chamber, means for turning said ingots about their longitudinal axes and displacing said ingots longitudinally through said chamber and comprising, a plurality of cranks arranged in longitudinally spaced relation in said chamber and with their axes of rotation transverse to said chamber and each having a rotational path extending above said first means for engagement with ingots supported thereon and adapted on rotation to successively engage, rotate, and longitudinally displace said ingots, and means for turning said cranks.

3. An ingot furnace comprising, an elongated furnace chamber, longitudinal supporting means in said chamber for supporting a plurality of elongated ingots of polygonal form in cross-section arranged with the length of the ingot width- Wise of said chamber, a plurality of longitudinally spaced transversely extending cranks in said chamber each adapted on rotation to engage an underside of an ingot adjacent an edge thereof to elevate said edge and rotate said ingot to rest on an adjacent side and to slide the ingot on said last named side longitudinally into the reach of the next longitudinally spaced crank, and means for rotating said cranks in unison.

furnace chamber, longitudinal supporting means in said chamber for supporting a plurality of elongated ingots of polygonal form in cross-section arranged with the length of the ingot Widthwise of said chamber, a plurality of longitudinally spaced transversely extending shafts each provided with a pair of transversely spaced offset portions adapted on rotation of the shafts to engage an underside of an ingot adjacent the opposite ends thereof to turnand longitudinally displace said ingot, said shafts being longitudinally spaced by a distance substantially equal to the longitudinal displacement of the ingot by each shaft whereby an ingot may be carried by successively spaced shafts longitudinally through the chamber, and means for rotating said shafts in synchronism.

5. An ingot furnace comprising, a furnace enclosure defining an elongated furnace chamber, a pair of longitudinally extending supporting walls in said chamber adapted to support a plurality of longitudinally spaced transversely extending ingots, a plurality of longitudinally spaced transversely extending shafts mounted in said chamber below the top portions of said walls, each of said shafts being provided with a pair of offset crank portions at the opposite outer sides of said walls and having a rotational path extending above the top portions of the walls for engagement with ingots rested thereon and adapted during rotation to successively engage, rotate, and longitudinally displace said ingots, and means for rotating said shafts in unison.

6. An ingot furnace comprising, an elongated furnace chamber, longitudinal means in said chamber for supporting a plurality of elongated ingots arranged widthwise of the chamber, a plurality of longitudinally spaced cranks tubular in cross-section extending transversely across said chamber and having a rotational path extending above said supporting means for engagement with ingots rested thereon and adapted during rotation to successively engage, rotate, and longitudinally displace said ingots, each of said cranks being adapted for connection to a supply of cooling fluid, and means for rotating said cranks.

7. An ingot furnace comprising, an elongated furnace chamber, longitudinal means in said chamber for supporting a plurality of elongated ingots arranged widthwise of the chamber, a plurality of longitudinally spaced cranks tubular in cross-section extending transversely across said chamber and to the outer sides thereof and having a rotational path extending above said supporting means for engagement with ingots rested thereon and adapted duringrotation to successively engage, rotate, and longitudinally displace said ingots, swivel means at the opposite ends of said cranks adapted for connection to a source of cooling fluid for circulation through said cranks, and means for rotating said cranks.

8. An ingot furnace comprising, an elongated furnace chamber, longitudinal means in said chamber for supporting a plurality of elongated ingots arranged widthwise of the chamber, a plurality of longitudinally spaced cranks tubular in cross-section extending transversely across said chamber and to the outer sides thereof and having a rotational path extendingabove said supporting means for engagement with ingots rested thereon and adapted during rotation to successively engage, rotate, and longitudinally displace said ingots, swivel means on the outer ends of said crank at the outer sides of said chamber adapted for connection to a source of cooling fluid for circulation of said fluid through said cranks, sprockets carried at one end of said cranks at one of the outer sides of said cham ber, and a chain connected to said sprockets for rotating said cranks in synchronism.

9. An ingot furnace comprising, a furnace enclosure of elongated form and having longitudinal side walls and transverse end walls and defining an elongated interior furnace chamber, one of said end Walls being provided with a transversely elongated opening therein registering with said supporting means for passage of ingots of elongated form into one end of said chamber in a widthwise position of the length of said ingot, means for turning and advancing said ingots longitudinally through said chamber, one of said enclosure walls providing a discharge opening at an opposite end of said chamber, and an endless conveyor extending through said opening and into said chamber for removing ingots therefrom with the length of the ingot passing out through said opening, said ingot supporting means terminating at said conveyor for deposit of ingots onto said conveyor.

AL MEYER. 

